Small community near Merrill hoping to find burglar who rode snowmobile

Submitted: 03/28/2013

MERRILL - Home should be a place you can relax and feel safe. Not a place where you'll find a burglar standing in your living room. That happened in a small community near Merrill on alert last week.

Pine Dells Road sits just southeast of Merrill. It seems like a fairly quiet place. But last week a snowmobiler walked right into Joreen Jaeger's daughter's home. She lives next door.

Joreen's granddaughter was just getting out of the shower when she saw him in the house.

"Our granddaughter said she could smell liquor on him," Joreen said. "She figured he had been drinking. Now, if it had been someone who was unemployed and just looking for gas money for pleasure to ride his snowmobile, or if he was looking for money to buy more alcohol."

The man rode off on his sled, but not before taking two change jars and a carton of cigarettes.

Lincoln County Sheriff's Deputies searched the scene and trails, but still haven't found him.

"We looked at the tracks trying to find, potentially, what kind of snowmobile it may be based on the tracks in the snow," Lt. Tim Fischer said. "We were unsuccessful for that."

Witnesses say the man has short brown hair, is clean shaven with bad teeth and a black snowmobile suit.

But more than a week out, deputies don't have any other leads.

If you know something about this case, please call the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office at 715-536-6272.

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